We've been talking a lot about calories. Why? Because the number of calories you
eat and drink, and use up through daily activities, is closely associated with your
weight. Does it matter what types of foods the calories come from? Yes and no.

When it comes to calories and managing your weight, the answer is no. A calorie is
a calorie is a calorie. Choosing healthy foods is important, and we'll address that in
the next chapter, "Calories + Nutrients = Food." But first you need to learn about
calories: what a calorie is, how to count calories, and how to set your calorie goal.
This information will help you assess how close you are to your calorie goal. Then,
you will be able to choose the kind of changes that will get you on your way to a
Healthier You.

We know that most people don't like to count calories. It may feel like a daunting, overwhelming,
and time-consuming task. We hear you. That is why A Healthier You is
going to provide you with tools that will make it manageable for you to count calories and
follow a healthy eating plan that you can make part of your everyday lifestyle.

A Calorie is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of a liter of water
1 degree. Sure, it was hard to understand when your science teacher explained it.
Relax. It is just a scientific way to measure energy. That said, what do you need to
know about calories? Just a few things: Think about what you regularly eat, what
your calorie needs are, and how to count calories. It takes approximately 3,500 calories
below your calorie needs to lose a pound of body fat. It takes approximately
3,500 calories above your calorie needs to gain a pound.

At this point, you know how many excess calories it takes to gain a pound or deficit
calories to lose a pound (3,500), and you know about how many calories you need
(in "My Personal Profile"). You are already on the road to a Healthier You! The next
thing you need to learn is how to count calories so you can determine how many
you eat each day. At first, this may seem like too much trouble, but once you get
familiar with portion size and the number of calories in your favorite foods, you'll be
able to estimate how many calories you eat each day, easily, without weighing your
food and without taking too much of your valuable time.

Anthony is a 56-year-old man who is 5'10" and weighs 185 pounds.
Anthony is a high school teacher and track coach who spends most of
his day standing at work. Anthony does some light yard work when he
returns home from work each day.

Using the BMI chart on page 12, Anthony determined that he has a
BMI of 27. According to the BMI chart, he is overweight.

Next, using the definitions on page 15, Anthony determined his physical
activity level. Because he does some physical activity while coaching
and doing light yard work each day for at least 30 minutes, he is active.

Then, Anthony, using the calorie chart on page 16, determined his estimated
calorie needs based on his age and current physical activity level.
This is approximately 2,600 daily calories to maintain his current weight.

How many calories do you eat each day?

Calories count—and they come from both food and beverages. When eating packaged
foods (for example, frozen, canned, and some prepared foods from the grocery store),
counting your calories is easy—it's on the Nutrition Facts label. When eating foods
that do not have a Nutrition Facts label, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, or when
eating at home or in restaurants, determining calories is more difficult. If you can't
count calories because there is no Nutrition Facts label, you should pay attention to
portion size.

Use the Nutrition Facts label. Most packaged foods have a Nutrition Facts label.
An example of one is on the next page. You can use this tool to make smart food
choices and to find out how many calories and nutrients you are actually eating. To
use the label effectively to count calories, you need to check serving size, servings
per container, and calories. Look at the serving size and the number of servings
per container. How many servings are you consuming? If you are eating 2 servings,
you are eating double the calories and the nutrients listed on the Nutrition Facts label.

Portion size is the amount of food eaten at one time. Serving size is the amount stated
on the Nutrition Facts label. Sometimes, the portion size and serving size match;
sometimes, they don't. For example, if the label says that 1 serving size is 6 cookies
and you eat 3, you've eaten ˝ of a serving of cookies. More importantly, you have just
reduced by half the calories listed on the Nutrition Facts label. Remember that the
serving size on the Nutrition Facts label is not a recommended amount to eat; it's a
simple and easy way for letting you know the calories and nutrients in a certain
amount of a food. If the label helps you be more aware of how much you eat or
drink—all the better!

When eating foods without a Nutrition Facts label, pay attention to how your portion
size compares to a recommended amount of
food from each food group. In chapter 7,
"Breaking It Down," we'll show you how to
do this.

Some foods prepared at the grocery store and
other foods such as produce items may not
have food packaging that provides nutritional
information, but this information can sometimes
be obtained in the store by request.
Many restaurants have nutrition information
on the foods they serve available at the
restaurant or on their Web site. As grocery
stores increase the number of prepared products
that have nutrition information, it will
become easier for you to make lower-calorie
choices to help you control your calories every
day. Don't be afraid to ask for nutrition information
if you don't see it displayed at the
grocery store or on the menu when eating out.

On the sample Nutrition Facts label above, the serving size of this food is 1 cup, and
there are 2 servings in this container. There are 260 calories per serving of this food.
If you eat the entire container of this product, you will eat 2 servings. That means
you need to double the calories (260 calories x 2 = 520 calories) to know how many
calories you are eating. If you eat 2 servings, you will have eaten over 500 calories!

Now, you've learned how to use food packaging to help you figure out how many
calories you are eating. In the following chapter, you will learn how to build healthy
eating patterns using food groups. Estimating how many calories you are getting
from these foods can be challenging at first. But since one of the best ways to manage
your weight is to be aware of foods and beverages high in calories, being able to
keep track of where your calories are coming from is an important skill that will help
you for the rest of your life.

Setting your calorie goal

In chapter 4, "Where to Start," you determined your Body Mass Index, or BMI, to
assess whether you were underweight, at a healthy weight, overweight, or obese.
Staying at—or getting to—a healthy weight can help us in several ways. Not only
might it help us feel better and look better, but science shows it plays an important
role in reducing our risk of several types of chronic diseases that can definitely
interfere with our hopes for a long, healthy life.

There is a right number of calories for you. This number depends on your age,
gender, weight, activity level, and whether you're trying to gain, maintain, or lose
weight. In chapter 4, "Where to Start," you estimated how many calories you need
to maintain your weight at your current physical activity level.

If you are at a healthy weight (BMI between 19 and 24), then use the number of
calories you estimated as your calorie needs based on your current physical activity
level. This is the number you wrote down in "My Personal Profile."
In chapters 9 and
10, you will determine whether you are physically active enough to reduce your risk
for developing a chronic disease or to maintain or achieve a healthy weight.

If you are obese, overweight, or have a high waist size and two or more risk factors,
even modest weight loss (for example, 10 pounds) has health benefits.
Preventing further weight gain is very important. Eating fewer calories while
increasing physical activity are the keys to controlling body weight. Simply put,
eat less, move more. If you need to lose weight, aim for slow, steady weight loss by
decreasing calorie intake while maintaining an adequate intake of nutrients. Next
are a couple of suggestions to get you on your way.

If you need to lose weight, a reduction of 500 or more calories each day from added
sugar, fat, and alcohol is a good strategy. For example, drink water flavored with lemon
or lime, seltzer water, or a diet soda instead of a sugar-sweetened beverage, or use a
non-caloric sweetener instead of a sweetener with calories. Together these small
changes can quickly add up to 500 calories! Later on, we will give you more details on
how to do this.

tipfor controlling calories:

On the Nutrition Facts label, when 1 serving of a single food item contains 400
or more calories, it's high; and 40 calories is low.1

The packaging of a food can also contain other useful information for making your
food selections. For example, sometimes, foods are labeled "calorie free," "low calorie,"
"reduced or lower in calories," "light," or "lite." Here is a quick guide to what
those words mean: